Okay, I lied a little bit. Someone may die in connection with the screams. I wanted to make sure that I deliver with all the hype I gave the party. So, please don't be too disappointed if it isn't what you expected. Enjoy!

Bree opened her eyes to bright light streaming in through the window. She smiled and stretched. It felt wonderful to be home at Llanfair, in her familiar room, surrounded by family. She pushed back the covers and glanced at the clock on the small table beside the bed. It read 7:00.

She sighed and sat up. Her crazy work schedule had allowed to her adjust to surviving on only a few hours of sleep and she had grown accustomed to waking early. And of course, vacation was no different. She slipped her feet in the slippers that waited on the floor next to the big bed and stood up.

Prowling around the room for her suitcase, she pulled a pair of sweats out and her shampoo. She crept to the door, opened it, and slipped out to the bathroom at the end of the hall. As she passed her sister's and mom's room, she could see that everyone was still asleep.

Closeting herself in the bathroom, she turned on the water and let it blast until the temperature had rose to a steamy tropical heat. Undressing quickly against the cold air, she stepped in and let the water wash over her in rivets. It felt so good to be able to spend more than five minutes in the shower. Applying a bit of shampoo to her hands, she worked it into her blond hair. She soaped up her skin and waited until all the shampoo had washed out.

Turning off the water, she pulled back the curtain and reached for a towel. She wrapped it around her body and carefully stepped out. Drying quickly against the cool air, she pulled on the clothes, she brought into the bathroom. She wrapped her hair in the towel and hurried back to her room. Once she was closed inside, she reached for a brush and tugged it through her hair.

Bree looked at herself critically in the vanity mirror. She was really beautiful. If she was lucky, she could pull off cute, but there were definitely no striking features in her. She rubbed moisturizer into her face and studied the sharp features she'd been blessed with from the father she didn't remember. Although she was blond like Jessica, her face came to a point at her chin and her nose was particularly pronounced.

So she wasn't pretty, but a WSB agent didn't need to be pretty to be a good agent. She'd have to live with that knowledge and try to ignore the fact that she was something of a giant in a family of fairies. Even her grandmother and Aunt Natalie could be called beautiful for heaven's sake.

Bree sighed and finished with her light application of makeup. She hated putting paint on her face, but was just vain enough to realize that she needed it to soften her pronounced features. She pulled her long blond hair back into a braid and tied it with a hair band. Slipping out of the sweats, she unearthed a pair of jeans and running shoes. Finishing the ensemble with an ancient LU hoodie, she nodded in approval. For someone who was supposed to be on vacation, she was putting on a good front.

Bree turned off the bedroom light and quickly folded the covers on the bed back into place. She then opened the door and stepped out. Walking down the hallway toward the stairs, she descended them quietly, well aware of the squeaky step and her sleeping family upstairs. She planned to start a pot of coffee and have it ready when the rest of her family awoke.

That being said, Bree was thoroughly surprised to walk into the kitchen and find her mother sitting at the table. So as not to frighten Jessica, Bree walked quietly up to her. "Mom?"

Jessica jumped and turned around. She put her hand to her heart, as if to stop its wild beating. "Bree, you scared me. I didn't think that you'd be up this early."

Bree shrugged and went to the cupboard to get a mug. She poured the fragrant liquid into the cup and took a seat across from her mother. "It's habit. Not that I want to, but working with the WSB had made me grow accustomed to waking early and quickly."

"Still, I thought that because you were on vacation…"

Bree shook her head. "My body doesn't realize that it is on vacation. I have this internal alarm clock."

Jess laughed. "Oh Bree, I'm so glad that you are home. I've missed you."

"I've missed you too…and grandma and Julia."

"Oh, I don't think Julia's here. I saw her last week and she said that she was going to Port Charles to visit her friend from college," Jess replied.

"Oh, well that's okay. I still get to see everyone else," Bree said, getting up and walking to the window. She looked out over the grounds. "God, I've missed this view." She turned back to her mother. "I've seen some of the most wonderful vistas in the world. But none of them compares to Llanview and Llanfair."

Jessica smiled and nodded. "Like I said, I'm so happy that you are here for an extended visit."

"There are a lot of people I want to see while I'm here. But like I told grandma, I might be going to Port Charles for a little while. A friend and colleague were injured in a car accident and last I heard, she was out of surgery and in a coma," Bree replied, sitting back down.

Jessica nodded. "Well, if you go there, you'll probably see Julia." Then she brightened. "So, what do you want to do first?"

Bree laughed. "You don't have to stop everything and spend time with me, you know."

Jessica looked shocked. "Why of course I do. You're my only daughter and I hardly ever get to see you since you joined the WSB."

"Well, in that case. I want to see Aunt Natalie and Uncle Jared, for one. Then maybe lunch at the diner. And then, you can choose. But I do not want new clothes or a facial," she warned and shook her head at Jess's innocent look.

Jess stood up and dumped her cup in the sink. "Okay, no facials. But you look like you could—okay" she amended, meeting Bree's glare. "Let's go get donuts and surprise Nat and Jared." She hurried out of the room with Bree close at her heels. Bree shook her head. It was going to be an interesting day.

XXXXXXX

Morgan shoved the ring box in his pocket as Mattie secured the ring on her finger. He grabbed her hand and together they rushed back over the footpath toward the house. As they grew closer, they could hear the din of frantic voices.

Moments later they were entering the house and the ballroom to find the dance floor empty except for the large circle of people staring in the center of the room. Mattie hurried closer and pushed her way through to see what everyone was looking at.

"What happened?" She turned to Mackenzie.

Mackenzie shrugged. "I don't know. I was dancing with Spencer and suddenly there was a gasp. I turned around and saw Ric Lansing on the ground. No one knew what to do."

Mattie stared at her sister. "Well, why isn't anyone helping him? He's choking!" she rushed over to him and knelt on the ground. "Ric? Can you hear me? It's Mattie Drake…Dr. Mattie Drake. I'm going to help you," she said loudly, while everyone else looked on.

She turned around and stared at the crowd of people. "What are you doing? Why isn't anyone helping him?" She looked wildly around. "Spence, call the launch. We need to get him to GH as soon as possible. Molly, call an ambulance, have them meet us at the launch. I need some strong men to carry him to the launch. Nikolas? Dad? Cameron?"

When no one moved, she raised her voice. "What are you waiting for?"

Sarah seemed to find her voice first. "He's not worth the effort." She turned away and stalked out of the room. Jake followed behind her.

Mattie looked down at Ric, who was holding a hand to his throat and gasping for breath. It was her moral duty as a doctor to save him, but she couldn't do it herself. "Someone help me. I can't save him by myself!"

Lila spoke up. "If no one else will, I will. Mattie, I'm calling 911 right now." She pulled her cell phone out of her clutch and dialed the number. "Yes, yes. This is Lila Alcazar. I'm at Wyndemere on Spoon Island. We have a man who is having respiratory problems. We have several doctors here, but he will be on the next launch to the mainland. Yes, yes, yes. An ambulance waiting by the launch. Okay, okay, thanks." She snapped her phone shut and nodded at Mattie.

Claudia Zacchara pushed her way through the crowd. She poked Ric with her heeled foot. "You are a worthless bastard and God only knows why I ever thought that I loved you, but I can't just let you die. Not without suffering first." She looked down at Mattie. "I'll help you get him to the launch."

Mattie shook her head. "I can't move him. He's not stable. I-I need to help him breath. He's gasping for breath as it is." She looked down at the patient. Ric was turning blue and Mattie knew that if she didn't do something, he would die. Taking a chance, she looked up at Spencer. "I need to do a tracheotomy. Now. It will help his breathing. I need you to find me a very sharp knife, a first aid kit, some sort of alcohol, and small tube like a pen or a straw. Can you get those things for me?"

Spencer nodded and hurried off. Mattie then turned her father. "Dad, can you help me? I need you to hold him down."

Patrick started forward, but Kristina reached her first. She bent down close to Mattie. "Have you ever attempted this outside the operating room?" She whispered.

Mattie looked down at Ric, saw him struggling for every breath and growing weaker by the moment, and looked back up at Kristina. She shook her head. "No, but how different can it be? I might not have the proper instruments, but how hard can it be? And I have to do something. He's going to die!"

Kristina straightened and shrugged. "Well, there are a lot of people who wouldn't give a damn if he did." She turned and walked out of the room. Mattie sighed, it was clear that Kristina was one of those people.

Spence broke through the crowd with the items that Mattie had asked for. She nodded her thanks and turned back to her patient as Patrick knelt down. Spence stepped up and between him and Patrick; they held Ric down as Mattie studied the area of his neck. She recalled the last time she'd done this in the operating room, which by her perception had been in medical school. Gynecology didn't usually call for such a surgery. Shaking her head, she focused back on the task at hand.

Mattie used the alcohol to sanitize both the knife and Ric's neck. Taking a deep breath, she held her hand steady and made a small incision. Inserting the straw in the incision, she waited to see if it worked. Letting out the breath, she looked up at her father as Ric began breathing easier and his color began to return.

Patrick nodded as Spencer's phone rang. He answered it and nodded. Closing it, he looked at Mattie, "the launch is waiting and there's an ambulance waiting on the other side."

Mattie nodded as Spencer, Patrick and Nikolas carefully lifted the motionless man and carried him out of the ballroom and the house. They walked down the steps toward the launch.

Mattie breathed a sigh of relief and got creakily to her feet, only to stumble back down. As she did, Morgan hurried forward and caught her as she fell back. Once she was on her feet, Mattie smiled at him in thanks, but broke away. The crowd parted and Mattie hurried outside to the veranda. Morgan stared after her in surprise. As if nothing had happened, the remainder of the partygoers resumed their dancing and drinking.

XXXXXX

Mattie looked out at the launch. If she looked close enough, she swore that she could see the men loading Ric Lansing into the boat. Even if he died, she would know that she had at least tried to save him. That was something that she could comfort herself with.

"Mattie?" a hand touched her shoulder and she turned around to see Morgan standing there.

She hugged herself against the chill. "Morgan, I'm sorry."

"No, no. What you did back there, it was remarkable. Not many people would have helped a man like Ric Lansing," Morgan replied.

Mattie scoffed. "Obviously. No one else stepped up to help the man. I don't care what he has done to anyone over the years, but I'm a doctor—and so are Kristina and several others in that room, for that matter. I can't just let a person die."

"You did well. You have to keep that in mind, no matter what happens next," Morgan said, pulling her into his arms. She sighed and turned closer. "I'm exhausted now. That was nerve-wracking. I've never performed a field surgery before."

Morgan laughed. "You were a pro. Don't beat yourself up. There are many people here tonight who couldn't give a damn about Ric Lansing, beginning with his daughters. If he ends up dying, he'd be doing a lot of people some good."

Mattie turned around. "I can't look at it like that. I-I mean, I'm a doctor, I have an oath to heal." She looked back at the water.

"I know."

Mattie shrugged. "I'm not thinking about that now. I believe that you were speaking to me about a very important matter. Before we were interrupted…"

Morgan grinned. "I believe that we were finished. You already said yes, there's no backing out."

"Oh really," Mattie replied slyly and looked down at her hand, where the ring glinted.

"Yes, really. We are getting married," Morgan took her hand and led her back into the party.

"We are and I've never been so excited to tell everyone…" Mattie followed him in to their friends. They definitely had good news to tell everyone.